Stupid Little Christmas
by Stoplivi
Summary: Something to amuse me.


Another Christmas alone.

The small tree Josh had placed in living room was pretty pathetic, though it wasn't on the Charlie Brown scale. He actually hadn't planned on putting one up this year, but his mother made a fuss and insisted that he go out and buy one. Almost to spite her, he found the one that was on sale for half price and sitting in the back corner of the store.

She hadn't seen it.

Yet.

Pouring himself another cup of coffee, Josh took a glance out of the window above the sink. It had been raining all day. No snow this year, it seemed. Good. Meant less work for him to scrape off his driveway.

The couch was more than inviting as he took a seat and reclined in a tired heap. He wouldn't bother with the television; there wouldn't be anything on but Christmas specials. When he was a kid, he and his brothers would spend hours watching reruns of How the Grinch Stole Christmas and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Now there were only depressing Hallmark specials with cheesy morals. The last thing he needed was another reminder that he was alone.

Just as he was beginning to nod off, there was a knock at the door.

"Are you kidding me?" he asked aloud. Picking himself up, Josh headed for the door, mumbling about unwanted carolers or his old lady neighbors offering another fruitcake. Why was it always old women?

"What?" he didn't make an attempt to hide his grumpy mood.

"Ho ho ho to you, too."

Wrapped in a festive scarf and burgundy jacket, Olivia stood on his front porch, tugging off her hood and shaking her tousled hair. She shivered under her clothing.

"You just going to stand there or can I come in?"

Josh stepped aside. "Sorry. It's just—" he closed and locked the deadbolt behind her. "—I didn't expect company."

"Cool your jets, it's fine." Olivia shrugged out of her jacket and slung it across the recliner. "So, Merry Christmas." She smiled, throwing her arms around him a light hug.

Of course he tensed up, but he let it slide. He really needed to get better about that.

"Merry Christmas. If you don't mind me asking..."

"Why I'm here? Same as you, bud." She pointed a finger at his broad chest. "I don't particularly enjoy spending the holidays alone, you know?"

Oh he knew. When you weren't married or didn't live in your parent's basement, it was lonely. He was happy that he moved out, though. That was the most important thing.

"So how're you?" She removed her scarf, tossing it aside.

"Oh, yeah, I'm good. Mhm. Great."

She obviously wasn't buying that.

"Right. Wow, something smells good." She headed for the kitchen, ducking around the corner to follow the scent. "Ew, coffee. Got any hot chocolate?" she called back into the room. The sounds of her shuffling through the cabinets echoed through the silence.

"Uh, yeah, by the fridge. Look in the top shelf."

"Oh...okay, got it."

He took his seat along the sofa, clutching his coffee to his icy hands. Why was he so cold? There was even a fire going. It was a picture-perfect Christmas setting. All he needed was some music playing softly. Even his imagination was humming the tune to Baby It's Cold Outside. What a classic.

Wait a minute...

The humming grew louder and more feminine. Looking back towards the kitchen, he watched Olivia turn the corner and stroll back into the living room, red Solo cup in hand. She was humming the little ditty as she plopped into the seat next him. She blew off the rising steam.

"This is much better than your lousy coffee." She took a delicate sip. Again her body shivered. "Ah, that's great."

"So you don't have anyone to go home to?" Immediately he regretted asking.

"Well, no, but if I'm bugging you or interrupting something then I can leave."

"No, no. You're fine. Just asking."

"Does this mean no lady friend to come over and climb down your chimney?" she smirked, taking another sip.

The look on his face said it all, and Olivia made a mental note to never use such a horrible joke again. Boy, if looks could kill.

"Sorry. That was stupid."

"I'll say."

Tossing him a dirty look, she curled into the couch, bringing her knees up to her chest.

For a while the two sat in silence. Olivia stared into the fire, mesmerized by the soft glow. In turn Josh watched her, captivated by how the light dancing across her freckled face and dirty blond hair.

It made him think back to the first time he discovered he had been harboring some kind of emotion towards her.

The guys asked him to have a bonfire on the beach, crew and band only. He agreed. Olivia had been just another stagehand, helping put away merchandise and setting up Jacob's drum set. She didn't say much, but that intrigued him. She spent a lot of time with his twin, even if she was always the one listening. At the bonfire, she sat at his side, taking casual sips from her can of Coke and drawing little creatures in the sand with a stick. He watched the entire time, amazed at how someone could manage to draw a pretty decent cow skull in the thick sand. The fire flickered across her face, lighting up her thundercloud blue eyes. Once she noticed his staring, she looked up at him and said with a shy smile,

"Your phone is ringing."

"What?"

"Your phone? Like, cellphone? Yeah, it's ringing."

So it was.

"Oh, yeah, I'll get it." Snapping open his phone, he set down his coffee and walked into the kitchen. "Hello?"

"Heeeey, maaaan. How's my baby brother this Christmas evening?" Jacob's voice was kind of the last thing he wanted to hear right now.

Groaning, he replied, "I'm fine, Jake. What do you want?"

"Woooah. What's up with you?"

"Nothing." He sighed, running a large hand across his face. Dang, still cold. "How're you?"

"It's all good over here. The wife is putting cookies in the oven and there's a Desperate Housewives Christmas special on. Sorry you're spending the day alone, but you know how scared of flying mom is."

"Actually, I'm not alone. I've got company over."

"Seriously?"

"Yes."

"Who?"

He hesitated. "...Olivia."

There was a pause on the other end of the line. "...I knew it."

"Shut up."

"I knew it. I knew it. I. Knew it."

"You done?"

"...I knew it."

"God, Jacob, just hush." Why wasn't he the older brother again? Bad timing on his mother's part. Or however that process worked. "I got to go, okay?"

"Riiight. You go and ah...have fun." He caught the suggestive tone in his brother's voice and snapped his phone shut, promptly ending that pointless conversation.

Back in the living room, Olivia was snooping under the tree, dodging ornaments and light fixtures to find a present with her name. She picked one without a tag and shook it gently.

Josh cleared his throat, startling her into dropping it to the floor and shoving it back where it belonged. He gave her a playfully stern look, to which she only pouted and shuffled back to the sofa.

"Sorry. I'm still a kid." She giggled, in kind of a cute way that made him smile a bit. Or maybe it was a facial tick. Sometimes they were hard to tell apart.

"So, I didn't see my name under the tree." She prodded his side.

He spoke low, leaning in close. "Your present's in the bedroom."

Watching her face grow pale, Josh grinned and headed down the hallway to duck into his room. Olivia felt her heart drop in her chest, sending a fever to her cheeks. He poked his head back out of the doorway and held a bright blue package in his hands.

"See? It was in my room."

Olivia suddenly felt the urge to slap that stupid grin off his face, but refrained and accepted the gift.

"Go on. Open it."

He led her back to the couch, guiding her by placing his hand along her lower back. It was her turn to tense up.

They sat by the fire to give her proper lighting. She tried to hide her excitement as she tore at the wrapping paper. He could only smile as she pried open the box and laughed with girlish glee.

"Wow." Olivia reached into the box and pulled out a plush lion. The little creature's mane was ruffled and it's tiny black eyes seemed to glare up at her. It was perfect. "This is great."

"Glad you like it."

After studying the plush for a moment, she snickered and held it up to his face. "It kind of looks like you."

Josh raised an eyebrow.

"The face. C'mon, it's practically scowling. It's totally you."

"If you say so."

"Here, hold him." She placed the little lion in his hands. At the touch, his fingers were like ice. It was a sharp contrast against her warm skin.

"Your hands are freezing." She said softly, still clutching the lion that separated the space between them.

Through the silence that followed, the rain outside picked up, pounding against the roof as the thunder rolled overhead.

Slowly, almost too slow for the human eye, Olivia made to break the barrier, pushing the lion to the side and wrapping her arms around his neck, giving him a tight hug. He embraced her, wrapping his arms around her middle to keep her balance.

Seconds later, after he began to feel the warmth radiate off her body, Josh pulled her back to see her face. She was shy, he understood that, so he wasn't really surprised to find her staring off to the side, avoiding eye contact. Clutching her shoulders, he leaned in, tilting his head to capture her lips, giving her a long kiss. Her body froze, hands awkwardly resting on his denim-clad thighs. Thunder clapped over the house, shaking her world entirely. Or maybe that was the mixed taste of hot chocolate and coffee that rested on their tongues. Yeah, probably the latter.

He was the first to pull back, leaving her leaning in for more. He chuckled and wrapped her up in his arms.

Picking up the lion, she sat it atop his dark hair, making it hang over his head in a silly manner.

"It still looks like you."

"You're a dork."


End file.
